The Music of My Life – 1992

Welcome back to The Music of My Life, where I feature ten songs from each year of my life. In most cases, the ten songs I choose will be ones I like personally (unless I explain otherwise). The songs will be selected from Billboard’s Year-end Hot 100 Chart, Acclaimed Music, and will all be released in the featured year.

In 1992, I turned 22 and would land a radio gig at WHND, Honey Radio. It was through my old radio partner that I would become all too familiar with karaoke bars. We spent a lot of time pretending to be singers at them. Believe it or not, it was listening to people try to sing that introduced me to many songs. Many of those songs, were ones I normally would have been unfamiliar with.

Let’s jump right into 1992!

The Spin Doctors are often referred to as an alternative band. I tend to think of them as a rock band, though. Two Princes sounds more like a rock song to me. I could easily hear the Stones covering it.

A buddy of mine used to sing this song all the time. From the opening drum kick and guitar lick, I was hooked. The content of the song was influenced by some classic literature. Chris Barron, said:

“I loved The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. I was really into fantasy fiction and stuff like that. I wrote that song when I was 19, so I was still coming out of childhood, and as a child I loved wizards and kings and queens and princess and princesses and stuff like that. And I loved Shakespeare – I already was way into Shakespeare. So I gravitated towards that kind of imagery just because I liked books and poems from that period of time.”

Drummer Aaron Comess said that the song was almost a lot faster. “There are certain songs when you find the right tempo, all of a sudden the lyrics come out, it feels right and I think with ‘Two Princes’ we really lucked out. It’s one of those things, we got in the studio, found a good tempo, we recorded it, everything just really came together. It’s very simple, there’s not a lot of stuff on it, somehow the sound and feel we got, we just lucked out and found the perfect thing.”

Songfacts pointed out that it was songs like this one that were in high demand on radio in 1992-1993. There was an onslaught of hip-hop songs at the time and it was this “sound” that began pushing it back a bit.

Two Princes

Here is another example of how I came to learn of the original because of a parody. I was familiar with the cover of their Nevermind album, but unfamiliar with a lot of their songs. Enter once again, Weird Al.

When Al first heard Nirvana, he was very impressed but thought they wouldn’t catch on. He was thrilled when “Teen Spirit” became a huge hit, since that made the group a parody target.

Al is famous for asking for permission before doing any type of parody. He got permission from Nirvana’s lead singer Kurt Cobain while he was doing an episode of Saturday Night Live. Kurt initially thought the song would be about food. Instead, it was poking fun at how hard it was to understand their lyrics.

The video is a very close parody of Nirvana’s, and got almost as much airplay. For example, the same janitor used in Nirvana’s video also makes an appearance in Weird Al’s. This time donning a tutu and playing a tuba. Al dresses just as Cobain did, complete with wig. He plays a fake blowup guitar and makes fun of the hard-to-understand lyrics by gargling water and singing with marbles in his mouth.

FYI – Dick Van Patten was not in the Nirvana video.

This song is probably the one that really solidified my opinion of Weird Al as a musical genius!

Smells Like Nirvana

For comparison – the original video:

Ok, I admit that the next song was far from a hit. It only peaked at #92 in the US, however in the UK it hit #27. The original, of course, was a number one hit for Elvis Presley in 1957. Personally, I really like Billy Joel’s version of All Shook Up. I think it should have done better on the charts.

The song is one of many Elvis covers from the soundtrack to Honeymoon in Vegas. The movie starred Nicolas Cage, James Caan, and Sarah Jessica Parker. It also featured a whole lot of Elvis impersonators.

What I love about Billy’s version is that it retains the feel of the original, but there is enough “Billy” to make it his song. When I was DJing, I used to put on a cape, an Elvis Wig, Elvis glasses, and grab some random gal out of the audience and “lip synch” this to her. It was ridiculous, but it always got a laugh from the crowd (along with a lot of photos).

All Shook Up

Next, we have the only song that I will fast dance to. I say this, because I believe there is no real dancing necessary. Songfacts explains this perfectly:

House of Pain’s Jump Around earned relentless airplay on MTV and pop radio, and became a huge crowd pleaser in bars and dance clubs. It was great for getting people on the dance floor, as no real dancing is involved – just jumping around.

Exactly. I jump like a fool when this one is on! It’s hard to look bad. It brings the bounce with a steady, throbbing rhythm along with explicit instructions on when to jump. You can’t mess this one up!

Erik “Everlast” Schrody wrote the song. Songfacts explains that the lyrics on this track are very aggressive. It contains lines like “I bust him in the eye, and then I’ll take the punk’s ho.” Everlast was surprised when the song crossed over to a pop audience. He thought it was “too hardcore” to do so. The “pugnacious” lyrics, however, are tempered with comic relief. Listen for lines like “I got more rhymes than there’s cops at a Dunkin’ Donuts shop. ” They make it a lot less threatening.

If the horn flourish that opens this song sounds familiar, it is because it comes from Bob and Earl’s song, “Harlem Shuffle”.

Jump Around

Next a movie song that never made the movie’s soundtrack. In A League of Their Own, Madonna starred with Tom Hanks, Geena Davis and Rosie O’Donnell. The film was based on the true story of an all-women baseball team that was popular during World War II.

The song is about a woman who can’t and let go of her past, with the implication that her present circumstances aren’t so good. The lyrics fit well with the film’s premise, as the now-elderly women reunite and recall their glory days as baseball stars.

To a degree, I can relate to this as I tend to live in my nostalgia and memories, however, my present circumstances are actually good. I find myself thinking of those summers playing ball at our old elementary when I hear this song.

This made me laugh: The video for this song, which shows Madonna singing from the pages of a photo album, bears a strong resemblance to Boy George’s video for his 1987 song “To Be Reborn.” The similarities were not lost on the Culture Club singer, who angrily dubbed it “This Used to Be My Video” in his autobiography.

This Used To Be My Playground

What I love about country music is the honesty of it. There are a handful of songs that I can say really hit home for me. One of them is from Travis Tritt’s third album. For me, I could relate to the lyrics of Lord Have Mercy on the Working Man. After all, I was working on a DJ’s salary!

Truth be told, it doesn’t matter what job you hold, these lyrics hit home. While primarily focusing on the economical injustice to blue collar workers, it fits anyone who struggles financially.

Uncle Sam’s got his hands in my pockets
And he helps himself each time he needs a dime

Why’s the rich man busy dancing
While the poor man pays the band
Oh they’re billing me for killing me
Lord have mercy on the working man

The final verse features Tritt’s friends joining in. Listen for Brooks and Dunn, George Jones, Little Texas, Tanya Tucker, T. Graham Brown and Porter Wagoner.

Lord Have Mercy On The Workin’ Man

MTV’s Unplugged had been around since 1989. It featured Joe Walsh, The Cure, Paul McCartney, Sting, and Mariah Carey. Eric Clapton recorded an Unplugged performance at Bray Studios in London. He rearranged many of his classic songs for the acoustic context.

The resulting Unplugged album went on to become the best selling Unplugged album in the U.S. and worldwide with sales of 10 million in the U.S. and 26 million worldwide. He earned six Grammy Awards for the album. He earned Grammys for Record of the Year, Album of the Year, Song of the Year, Best Male Pop Vocal Performance, Best Rock Male Vocal Performance and Best Rock Song.

I have been a fan of acoustic shows for a long time. I loved when artists came in and played acoustically for us. It is raw and you really feel the song. When I heard the Unplugged version of Layla, I couldn’t get enough of it. I loved the entirely different feel to the song! It was so much more bluesy.

The Unplugged version also helped Eric do his vocal. According to Songfacts, “playing the “Layla” riff while singing is like juggling on a unicycle, so Clapton tries to avoid it. When he does the rock version live, he’ll play the riff until his vocals come in, then let one of his band members take over the riff.” With the slower version, it was a lot easier for him.

Layla (Unplugged)

When it comes to Disney, you cannot deny the amazing songs that have been featured in their films. It is truly hard to picture anyone other than Robin Williams as the Genie in Aladdin. He was just perfect. There were hours of audio that were not used in the film from Robin. If it were ever released to the public, I’d buy it in a heartbeat!

Prior to having children, I was not one to run out and watch a Disney movie. However, knowing that Williams was the Genie in this one, I had to go see it. I was not disappointed.

The Genie’s song, Friend Like Me was written by the amazing composer Alan Menken and lyricist Howard Ashman. Menken and Ashman didn’t write this with Robin Williams in mind, but the actor would make the number his own. Menken told Entertainment Weekly:

“We didn’t know who was going to play the genie when we wrote the song. We were looking at the character as black, a hipster, and I suggested a Fats Waller, Harlem stride-piano style from the ’40s. When Robin Williams was suggested, my first thought was, ‘Can he sing like Fats Waller?’ Robin learned every note. He was working on Hook at the time, and he would come in after being stuck in a harness all day and sit at the piano and learn. When we went into the studio, we got exactly the Fats Waller performance we wanted, and then everyone said, ‘Okay, but now can we let Robin do his thing?’ He was amazing. That trumpet wah-wah-wah was supposed to be from an instrument, and he made it vocal. He took ahold of the creative process, both on that and ‘Prince Ali’ especially. My God, he went crazy on ‘Prince Ali.’ He was doing the Thanksgiving Day Parade, Arab-style.”

One source says that the song was originally written as a Cab Calloway style big band number. Some elements of this concept remain (for instance, when the Genie scats, in typical Calloway moves), but after Robin Williams was cast it was expanded as a more comedic, pop-culture-filled song.

I miss Robin Williams. He could do comedy and drama and do them both well. This is what makes a great actor, in my opinion. He was truly one of the best ad-libbers and I always loved watching him on late night shows.

When we were picking songs for our alumni band one year, I picked this song for us. Not the best song to march to in a parade, but it was fun to play.

Friend Like Me

I was disappointed in the soundtrack version, as it seems like Robin’s vocals are a bit buried.

I just realized that my list has two Elvis covers on it. Technically, they are both movie songs, too.

When ZZ Top released their Greatest Hits album, they included a remake of Viva Las Vegas. ZZ Top took it up a notch. They took Elvis’ song and modernized it and gave it a real driving rock sound.

I remember my dad bringing home the 12 inch single of it and saying, “Keith, you’ve got to hear this!” He put it on the turntable and there was a downward swishy sound effect followed by Elvis saying, “Y’all still want me to come with ya?” Once the guitars kick in, it just jams!

It’s one of my guilty pleasure songs.

Viva Las Vegas

I had a meeting with a bride and groom once. We were going over songs for their wedding. When I asked them what their wedding song was, they told me “If I Had $1,000,000 by Barenaked Ladies.” I must have looked like an idiot. I thought they were joking. “Barenaked Ladies?! Really?!” I had never heard of them.

I had no idea what to expect when I went searching for the song. I’ve had my share of weird songs to play for the bridal dance, so I was ready for anything. I was finally able to get a copy of it, but it wasn’t easy. The couple enjoyed their dance and the crowd loved every second of it.

Even though it’s one of the group’s most popular songs, it was never a hit single in America. It wasn’t a hit in the UK either. A lot of it was timing: The group didn’t break through outside of their native Canada until their 1998 album Stunt. The song was even re-released in 1996, but didn’t chart then either.

This is a very important song for Barenaked Ladies. They have performed it at nearly every live show since 1988. Frontman Ed Robertson told Songfacts:

“It has become its own thing and people sing along and it represents a time and a place for so many people. It’s oddly a song I don’t get bored of. It brings such joy to the room that it’s hard to not enjoy it.”

He goes on to say, “That song, it was about being in love and being maybe a little bit extravagant but not losing hold of what’s important.” Ultimately it’s just about celebrating your good fortune with someone else, and I think I’ve stayed pretty true to that.”

The song was my introduction to the group. I have come to enjoy many of their future songs, too. Perhaps one or two may show up in the years to come.

If I Had $1,000,000

That’s a wrap on 1992. Did I miss one of your favorites? Drop it in the comments.

Next week, as we head to 1993, a few ballads with a lot of personal meaning to me, a couple fun dance songs, a spelling lesson, and more stories behind the songs.

Thanks again for reading!

A Purr-plexing Cat-astrophe?

So a co-worker came in last week and sat down next to me. “Keith, do you want another kitty?” Without any hesitation whatsoever I gave her a firm, “No!” She showed me a picture of four kittens who had been abandoned at a relative’s house and said they were trying to find them homes. I said that was sad, but I couldn’t do another cat.

She posted the photo on Facebook asking for folks who wanted to give these kitties a new home. Within five minutes, I received a video call from my wife and kids. When I answer the phone, Andrew says, “Daddy. Can we please get the tan kitty?”

I forgot that my wife is friends with my coworker on Facebook. I turned and gave her a dirty look. She started laughing and told my wife that she had already asked me. I told her that I had politely declined, but that was not ending the conversation.

When Andrew goes into a meltdown or starts crying, we can usually get him out of it by suggesting he find our cat Maizey. He will find her and hug on her and all is better. So the argument was that the new kitten could be a therapy cat for Andrew. (THERAPY CAT?!?) Then my daughter came on the phone and said she wanted a kitty, too. I told them I would think about it.

My coworker called the lady who was taking care of the kittens to let her know I would be by the next day to pick up this kitten! I didn’t stand a chance …

So we piled into the car on the day before International Cat Day and drove the short distance to pick up the new kitten. Andrew was ecstatic! He went into the house with me and couldn’t wait to hold the kitty. We put her in the cat carrier and he wanted to carry it out to the car. I had to take it from him though, he was so excited he was shaking that poor kitty up on the way to the car!

There were many names tossed around and she was almost named Pickle! Then the kids remembered this cartoon show called Super Kitties that the watch on Disney. There is a cat on there that they like, so they named ours after it – here’s Bitsy.

As much as I was against getting a new kitten, to see the kids loving her makes it worth it.

Maizey isn’t quite sure how to take the kitty yet, but they seem to get a long. Daisy won’t leave the kitten alone! She’s always right by her.

The kitten is becoming a bit more playful and she’s already started swatting at Daisy’s nose. When those claws start to get bigger, the dog is in for a big (and painful) surprise!

Bitsy is already using a litter box and having no trouble making herself at home.

Last night she clawed her way up the blanket on my bed and began attacking my hand. She is obviously going to be very playful.

Of course, after running and playing, eating, and running away from the kids and the dog, she needs to find a place to sleep. Honestly, I’d prefer she lay on a blanket or something, but I suppose this is ok … for now….

Welcome home, Bitsy!

Friday Photo Flashback

Ok, the last two weeks were flashbacks of a serious nature, so I thought I would find a picture I could pick apart a bit. I know Max over at the PowerPop blog loves these photos.

According to the date stamp, this was developed in 1988 (the year I graduated from high school). That being said, we never seemed to develop film right away, so this could have been taken in 1987. Welcome to a little corner of my brother’s room.

The first thing that hits me are two 70’s/80’s decorative staples – Paneling and wallpaper! I can still remember when my folks hung that astronaut wallpaper. I cannot remember if this was my room first or my brother’s. At some point, maybe before they hung the wallpaper, we switched rooms. Mine had globes and maps on the wall.

While my brother and I are very different, we are also very similar. Case in point: we both had shelves in our rooms for photos and display pieces. My shelves had Three Stooges dolls, a couple autographed pictures, ceramic pieces that my mother had made, and little collectibles. This bookcase/shelving unit was were my brother displayed many of his favorite things and photos.

Before I look at the shelves, I want to point out that in 1987 our band went to Disney in Florida and marched in a parade there. The Goofy hat on the wall was something that I believe both my brother and I had. I have no idea what that red thing is hanging in the upper left of this picture. He may remember.

I have blogged in the past about mom’s ceramics hobby and this photo features some of her work. You can read about that hobby here:

Another Mom Memory

We were obviously into Star Wars back then. Starting at the left on the top shelf is the first Star Wars piece mom made, R2-D2. She may have asked the two of us what pieces we’d like for her to make for us. I seem to remember asking for Chewbacca, who is next on the shelf. The R2-D2 was fairly simple. The detail was good and it had a shine to it. I remember my mom did something different with Chewbacca. For the life of me, I can’t remember what she called it, but it had more of a dirt/flat look to it. You really can’t tell, but in front of Chewbacca is the controls to the Millennium Falcon. I remember thinking how professional the thing looked and thinking, “My mom made this!”

In front of Chewbacca is a small ceramic cat that mom made for my brother. It is much like the little pieces that I mentioned in the blog link above. I have to chuckle at the that coconut next to Chewbacca. We both had one, I think one was just a single person, while it looks like Chris’s may have been two. I think those were banks, but I could be wrong. Did we get those at Disney, too? I think so, but I cannot recall.

Next to that coconut is one of the best pieces my mom ever did – Yoda. This was the final Star Wars piece she worked on and it was fantastic. She was always trying new things and for Yoda’s coat, she used some kind of sandy stucco stuff that really made it look cool. The detail on this piece was just amazing.

Before moving to the last piece on the top shelf, I have to point out that the US and Italian Flags on that shelf were something that we both got while in Epcot, a trip that (for me) was cut short because of an ambulance ride to the hospital (it was nothing).

The last piece on that shelf may be the piece that started it all for my brother’s Wonder Woman collection. He has always loved the show, the comics, and everything about her. At one point he had enough Wonder Woman stuff to fill that entire book case. Today he has a Wonder Woman ROOM!

As you move down a shelf, there are a load of pictures that I know just by looking at them. Even though they are blurry in this photo, I know exactly what they are. The first is a photo of my folks, my brother, and my grandma in Florida. It was one of those “old time” photos. I was off with my friends when they had it taken. Then there are photos of my Aunt Jodi and my grandma. I’m not sure where the cross came from, but it looks like maybe there is a rosary hanging from it. (We were raised Catholic, but no longer practice that). Then there is a photo of my other grandparents, my cheesy senior picture, my brother’s favorite photo of him and my grandpa, a Polaroid of a lot of us on squeezed on the couch with my other grandpa and our dad, and finally another old time photo of Chris and my dad in some Civil War get up.

I have to admit that the dog on the shelf below the photo shelf looked familiar. I kept thinking it was something like Teddy Ruxpin and I wasn’t far off. Long before they produced Webkinz, Ganz made Wrinkles Talking Dogs. When I looked it up, it said it was a puppet.

Each one of those dogs had a tag with a number on it, making each one unique. Ebay had one for sale – for $400!! Yikes.

Back to the photo…I remember Garfield being a big deal around this time. All of the school book sales had Garfield books, the book stores always had a big display of them, and it was always on the front page of the Sunday comics page. Not to mention the TV show and movies… I don’t remember my brother being into Garfield, but there he is with Odie. Another picture of grandma and Jodi in on that shelf, too.

Here’s where it get’s sketchy, but I can make out most of the rest of the photo. Below Garfield are Disney’s Donald Duck, Mickey Mouse, and Goofy (that’s a tiny bit of his hat you can see). My brother has always loved Disney and goes there almost annually. If I had $5 for every Disney Character he has taken a photo with, I could maybe fund a trip to Disney!

Just a couple more observations. Next to the Disney stuffies, you can make out the top of an old time radio. I think, and I may be wrong, my brother and I both had one of these. You could listen to AM/FM radio on it and on the side was a spot you slid a cassette tape in to listen to it. We had MANY old radio shows on cassette and listened to them often.

Finally, in the bottom right corner of the photo is a TV. I laughed out loud when I saw the dials to change the channels on it! My first thought was that the box on top of it was a cable box, but it is too early for that. I’m pretty sure that was my brother’s alarm clock. That TV was the one we played Atari and Nintendo on back in the day. We may even have had a Betamax video player in there. Those were the days!!

I’ll have to find a photo of the shelves in my room to share one day. If I do, I will warn you, my room was always a disaster!

Too Many Streams

Money hungry. That’s what they are. Money hungry.

I remember a time when we had Netflix and Hulu and that gave us pretty much every thing we needed to watch movies and TV shows. That’s not the case today. So many “parent companies” are pulling stuff off Netflix to add to their own streaming platform and quite frankly, it ticks me off.

All the NBC shows are now on Peacock, all Star Wars, Pixar and Disney is on Disney +, and so on and so forth. We’ll guess what? I’m not paying for all of them! We’re barely getting by with all of the inflation, gas prices, and life in general! I cannot afford $20 a month here and $15 a month there. The cable bill alone is high enough! To add more streaming services would put us in one big financial hole!

What really angers me is that there are things that I would LOVE to watch, but can’t because there is no way to justify paying for another streaming service. Paramount + has The Offer, a series about the making of the Godfather. I would love to see it. HBO Max has the new Christmas Story movie, which I hear is great! My list goes on and on. I just cannot in good conscience pay for something that I will only use to watch one or two shows.

The TV shows I would binge watch, well, many of them I have on DVD. I can pop them in whenever I want to. It seems to be more worth buying them outright at $40 and watching them for years that to pay $20 a month and maybe not even get the chance to watch them. And when you have them on DVD, you get the bonus features that don’t show up on streaming.

Actor Jack Palance once said, “The only two things you can really depend upon are gravity and greed.” The fact that there are almost as many streaming services as there are cable channels makes me sick. I’m sorry greedy streaming company – you aren’t getting my money every month.

I suppose I will hope that the one or two things I want to watch on their platform will end up on DVD soon …

Rant over.

Free From Earthly Burdens

The above picture is of a grave marker designed by a grieving father in Utah. This photo has made the rounds on the internet for many years. Captions vary, but they all seem to include that the father created it to represent his paralyzed son reaching up to the sky from the wheelchair he spent his life in. It is said to represent that his son is finally “free from his earthly burdens.”

This image popped into my mind this afternoon as I walked into the church where my 10 year old sister-in-law’s viewing took place. My wife and her family were there before I arrived. I took Ella and Andrew to the baby sitter and joined them afterwards.

When I walked in, a video played with photos from Grace’s life. Her smile ever present. Instrumental Disney songs played along with the video. Grace loved Mickey and Minnie Mouse.

There was a beautiful blanket with her picture on it and “Always in Our Hearts” written in a Disney font off to the side. Surrounding her was a stuffed Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Pluto, and Goofy.

I once again remembered the image above. Grace is free from her earthly burdens. No more wheelchair, no more feeding tube, no more pain, and no more suffering. I personally believe, based on my knowledge of Scripture, that she is feeling a joy that none of us has ever experienced. She is walking, talking, and singing. What a wonderful thing to know.

As with any death, it is hardest on those who are left behind. There is a void. There is the adjustment that has to be made to their being absent from our lives. There is the grieving process that has to happen for each one of us (and every one will grieve differently). It will not be easy.

My heart sank as I read a Facebook post from my father-in-law the other day: “This morning was so different. Normally Pam starts Grace’s breathing treatments while I make my coffee, then Pam gets Grace’s meds made up while I finish her treatments. Drinking coffee with no Grace brought tears to my eyes then I remembered her body has been restored and she doesn’t need treatments anymore that made me smile. Pam and I are trying to adjust to our new normal. Thanks for all the phone calls texts visits and prayers.”

The “new normal” isn’t normal at all. There will be many adjustments and life goes on for the rest of us and there will be many emotional hurdles to get over in the days, weeks, months, and years ahead.

Grace’s memorial service will take place at noon Wednesday. I would appreciate your prayers and positive thoughts for my wife, her parents, and our family. It is going to be a very hard day.

Time To Play

I know very few adults who wake up and jump out of bed with a ton of energy. Personally, I get up and need a cup of coffee in order to get the day going. My daughter, however, always seems to be up and ready for the day as soon as she gets out of bed. She’ll run out to the front room, go to her toy box and say, “Daddy/Mommy, do you wanna sit on floor with me and play Little People!?”

Back in January, I recounted my almost injury with Little People. You can refresh your memory here:

Dad Life – The Toddler Zone!

She will always ask to play when she first gets up, and while she will always ask to play with the “Little People,” any toy comes into play. This morning was no exception. My brother sent Ella a “Frozen” bath toy set and despite the fact that they are like 3 or 4 times bigger than the little people, they all interact with each other.

As this picture uploaded, I laughed out loud. At the bottom of the picture – Olaf, Elsa, Anna, and Sven from Frozen. Above that, you have Batman and Robin Little People mixed in with Little People from Little Mermaid, Rainforest Animals, and Barnyard mixed together with various toys from Happy Meals and random Disney characters.

You can only imagine the conversations that happen between the various characters. These conversations get finnier depending on who is playing each character. Today, Ella grabbed the big Anna from Frozen and said, “Do you want to build a snowman?” (a song from the movie) and Batman (me) replied, “I’d love to but the Joker is on the loose in Gotham City!” Ella usually looks at me dumbfounded and eventually tells me what I need to say!

Look again at the picture. You see the Bath Toy Olaf (snowman) and the Little People Olaf? Yeah, that’s what Ella calls “Mommy Olaf and Baby Olaf!” It doesn’t matter that Olaf is a snowMAN, it’s a mommy and baby! As a dad, I just roll with it and often find that this play time brings me tons of laughs.

Sometimes I think that adults should have their own toy box loaded with action figures, Matchbox cars, and things like that. Every day, for an hour or so, adults should get lost in pretend play and forget the troubles of the world. How would this be different that imagining that you are relaxing in a hammock on a tropical island somewhere?

Maybe I’m crazy, but I’d be the first to vote for the politician who mandated play time for adults! Bring on Go Carts, Dodge Ball, Mini Golf, and Laser tag!! The world needs a whole lot more fun.

May I Have This Dance?

I posted this on Facebook the other day, but I wanted to post it here, too. I post it here because it is a memory that I do not want to forget. It is one of those moments that a father will treasure forever.

Ella has been watching Disney’s The Princess and the Frog. She loves Princess Tiana. When Tiana and the prince kiss and change from frogs to humans once again, there is quite the celebration. In true Disney fashion, there is a big musical number at the end and they all start dancing.

Ella comes up to me and says, “You wanna dance with me, Daddy?!” No answer was necessary as I took her in my arms and did just that! The music that was playing was a jazzy Dixieland number, but that didn’t matter at all. I stood on my knees and held her and we danced. I hugged her, danced, twirled her around, and wiped away tears as she hugged me.

As we danced, I fished my phone out of my pocket to catch this …

I didn’t think I snapped this picture, but I did get it. I didn’t realize until after I went back to look at my phone. Originally, I thought I only caught one picture, this one:

I love them both! The first one I was probably fumbling around with the camera. The second one, I held the phone in my other hand and caught her swaying with me. THIS in itself was a wonderful moment!

As the music ended, I wiped tears away. She said, “Are you sad, Daddy?” I told her she made my heart very happy and they were happy tears. She looked at me and shook her head and said, “No. Daddy, you look sad.”

I only hope she knows just how happy she made me…. THAT is why I had to make sure this made it into a blog. Because, as I said on Facebook, just when I thought I have felt it all….she warms my heart in a way I have never experienced before!

Through tears, I promised her that I would dance with her whenever she wanted to.

Ella, my sweet baby girl, you are so special to me. Thank you for making our dance such a special one. I can’t wait to share more with you.

Inspired by Blogmas

A few blogs that I follow, started to talk about “Blogmas” a week or so ago. From what I can tell it is a list of 25-31 Blog post ideas. Sort of a daily writing prompt that are all Christmas related. I did a search for “Blogmas” and read through a few of them. The list seems to vary a bit, but mostly contains the same prompts. The idea is to blog about each of these prompts daily. Some of the lists stop at 25 (Christmas Day) and some end at day 31 (New Year’s Eve).

The ones I read yesterday were under the title “Christmas Tag.” In essence, you answer the 20 questions and then tag a blogger to answer the same. I won’t tag anyone at the end of this blog, since I am technically not officially committed to “Blogmas,” but I liked some of the questions on the list and thought they would make for good reading (even though I may have answered a question or two in more detail in past blogs). So here goes:

When do you start getting excited for Christmas? I would say that I probably start getting in the Christmas mood right after Halloween. Many radio stations begin playing Christmas music then. I could listen to Christmas music any time of the year, but hearing it on the radio starts to get me excited for the season.
Is Christmas your favorite holiday? I would say yes. I have so many wonderful memories of past Christmases. I love that people’s attitudes tend to be happier during the Christmas season. There just seems to be a lot more joy around Christmas.
Do you prefer to stay at home or travel for the holidays? I guess I prefer to stay home – or close to home – for the holidays. When I read the question, travel seems to insinuate going out of state or a lengthy trip. Most of my family is within a 60-90 minute drive, so that really doesn’t seem like travel to me.
Be honest: do you prefer giving or receiving gifts? Definitely giving. I love to see the look on a person’s face when they receive a gift from me. I wouldn’t consider myself the best gift giver (trying to buy anything for my wife is SO difficult). I like to have some sort of idea of what a person wants before I shop for them. As far as receiving gifts – I never really feel comfortable when someone buys me something.
Do you open any presents on Christmas Eve? I have every year since I was a kid. We always went to my grandma’s house for Christmas Eve and opened all our gifts. During my first marriage, we always let my sons open one gift on Christmas Eve (usually Christmas pajamas). Today, my sons come over the day before Christmas Eve and Christmas Eve morning is our “Christmas.” They spend Christmas morning with their mom. My daughter and my son will have some gifts to open Christmas Eve morning with their brothers and then more for Christmas morning.
Have you ever built a snowman? Yes. Quite a few actually. I remember loving when the snow was “good packing” and you could build snowmen and snow forts. Just recently, my daughter and I started a snowman, but she was so excited to play in the snow, he was never finished. Can’t wait for our next opportunity to build one.
Do you decorate the outside of your home for Christmas? Yes. Usually the front and side porches. It is by no means the best on the block, but I’m happy with it. One day I hope to be courageous enough to climb up on the roof and do more. For now, I’m happy with it.
Is your Christmas tree real or fake? Fake. In all my years, we’ve never had a real tree. I enjoy them when they are at someone else’s house, though. I enjoy the smell of the pine tree. I am not sure that if we ever got a real tree that I’d be comfortable with it. You know, fire hazzards, bugs or animals possibly still being in them, the fact that you have to water it each day, and stepping on pine needles for months after….
Most memorable holiday moment? How does one even begin to answer this question?! I have so many from childhood, and now even more with each of my children. I just couldn’t narrow it down to one.
What do you like to do over Christmas break? What break?! I have a couple days off and work the rest of the days in between. I wish that I could stockpile vacation time up so I could actually take more time off during the holidays so I could spend it with family.
Which holiday traditions are you most looking forward to this year? One thing that I have come to really look forward to is driving through the Holiday lights display at Crossroads Village on Christmas Eve night. It doesn’t change too much every year, but I always love going through and seeing the lights.
Best Christmas gift you’ve ever received? Urgh – again, very difficult to chose one. Maybe it was the Atari 2600. It also could be the cribbage board my grandpa gave me. Or it could be the gold trumpet charm from my mom. Stretch Armstrong? I just can’t narrow it down.
What is your all-time favorite holiday treat? Toss up between Pignolata (loved when my grandma made this!) or cannoli. Both were staples at Christmas time (along with many many Christmas cookies).
Your favorite Christmas movie? I would say A Christmas Story or any version of A Christmas Carol. (Christmas Vacation could easily be in there, too!)
Your favorite Christmas song? Man, all of these “favorite” questions are just to difficult! Dean Martin’s Marshmallow World is a definite favorite! Santa Claus is Back in Town from Elvis, Mel Torme’ The Christmas Song, Doc Severinsen’s Jingle Bells, the list goes on and on!
What makes the holidays special for you? Family! Spending time with my family is all that matters! Sharing those special moments with them is everything!
What would be your dream place to visit for the holiday season? I’ve never really been away for the holidays, but I know some places go all out. Disney, Branson, and so many other places really have some amazing things going on. Maybe one day we’ll be able to check them out.
Do you make New Year’s resolutions? Do you stick to them? I used to. I don’t really any more. I shouldn’t need a new year to want to make changes in my life. For many years, I would make them and would fail miserably at them.
You have been granted one Christmas wish, what will it be? I would wish to make a difference. Included in the wish, I would wish to be a role model for my children, a good friend, a good husband, and a man whose faith helped lead others to the Lord.
Who’s “it?” At this point on the list you are supposed to pick someone to answer the same questions. If you are so inclined, you may do so. If not, I hope you enjoyed my answers.

Bedtime Books

untitled

Today’s blog comes from a “Daily Writing Prompt”. The prompt reads: “Do you remember your favorite book from your childhood?” This prompt comes after I stumbled on a set of books that I had as a kid in a used book store.

The Charlie Brown Dictionary was a set of 8 books that had definitions of words. I remember my parents ordered these from somewhere and every month a new volume would arrive. I loved when a new volume would arrive. They had the entire set at this book store for the bargain price of $2! How can I pass that up?!

The writing prompt also comes a week or so after the baby shower. One of the things we want for our baby is a good library of books to read. We did receive some books at the shower, some of which I recognized, and some that I didn’t. Some of the books we received were books that I had read to my boys, and I am excited to share them with our daughter, too!

As I thought about the prompt, I don’t know that I can actually recall my “favorite” book as a kid. There are, however, many that I do remember vividly. I thought it might be fun to sit and off the top of my head, write about some of the ones I remember. I am sitting down to write this blog knowing that it will be incomplete. It will be incomplete, because I know I am going to probably miss a lot of them. Here goes:

The Poky Little Puppy

When I was growing up I think I had every one of the “Little Golden Books”. Of all of them, this is the one that immediately comes to mind when I think about my childhood. I remember buying it when my oldest was a baby and reading it to him. I really didn’t remember the story up until that point, but for me to remember it for so long, I am just guessing it was a favorite. I remember there being many Disney stories that were in the Little Golden Book collection.

Another Little Golden Book that I had, and eventually shared with my sons was a Sesame Street book.

The Monster at the End of This Book

411f3660-0b73-43ca-9d53-ebcf05010798_1_4ea1cd73d2cc8407397121c66b119ad2

As a child of the 70’s, I watched a lot of PBS. Sesame Street was a show I watched faithfully. Mr. Hooper was still alive when I was watching Sesame Street! The adventures of Ernie and Bert, The Count, Big Bird, Grover, and Kermit helped me learn letters and numbers. I mentioned in a previous blog that I had an Ernie hand puppet. I also had a stuffed Grover. I liked him cause he was always so silly. Grover is the star of this book. It is such a fun book to read and I am sure that it made me laugh as a kid, as much as it made my boys laugh! I can’t wait to share this one with Ella.

Dr. Seuss Books

Dr_-Seuss-books_1488409768492_56136711_ver1_0_640_480

I probably had every single Dr. Seuss book ever written! They were very popular with my generation. I have found that people either love or hate his books. I had a friend who just loathed when her son would pick Green Eggs and Ham to read. I could never figure out why.

I remember I was doing mornings on B95 and it was Dr. Seuss’ birthday. We had one of the contestants from American Idol (Phil Stacey) in town to do a show for us. We were talking about Dr. Seuss books with our newsman, Hal Maas earlier in the show, and he couldn’t remember half of them (which we razzed him about often). We actually had Phil Stacey read “Mr. Brown Can Moo! Can You?” on the air! The book has all kinds of silly noises, and Phil played it up on the air! It was so silly to hear him reading this, but he told us how much fun it was!

ffcc82dd-f1e0-4426-8cea-8266c9fc579d_1_2058d5369336f4f8619f6b61bc1ecbdb.jpg

I am sure I will be reading Ella many of his books.

Three Little Kittens

This was one of Dante’s favorite books. I think he loved it because of the cat noises I used to make while reading it to him. I am almost positive that this was another book my mom read to me. This is a must for me to read to Ella, especially since we have two cats at home.

Like I said, I KNOW I am forgetting others that were probably read to me as a child. I am hoping that those of you who are close to my age will offer us some of YOUR favorites. By doing that, maybe you’ll refresh my memory about other books from my childhood.

Books I Read to the Boys

The books above were books I loved growing up, and read to my boys. The following books are some of my favorites that I remember reading to them at bedtime. These will all be in Ella’s library, because I love them all!

Goodnight Moon

This book is so simple. I loved saying goodnight to all of the objects and having the kids point to them. Dante’ would always make a “Squeak” noise when we said good night to the mouse.

Rainbow-Fish

This book came in very handy when trying to teach about sharing and being selfish. The moral of the story and showing how sharing with others can make everyone happy is a great lesson that even adults need to remember.

The Kissing Hand

Untitled2-5c58742046e0fb000182137d

This one was voted one of the Teacher’s Top 100 Picture Books for Children. I read this to both boys especially as it got closer to when they were going to preschool. It’s really a great book to help children deal with the “separation” issue of going to school. Our book came with all these little red heart stickers and I think Dante’ used to put them on his backpack or pencil box.

The Going To Bed Book

71hZD6S5MmL

Sandra Boynton has so many great books for kids! I loved reading this one every night. It was so fun and her characters are just so cute! This is just one of MANY of her books that I loved.

I’m Thankful Each Day

i-m-thankful-each-day-

Probably one of my top 5 books to read! One of my favorite bible verses is I Thessalonians 5:18 which reads: “In every thing give thanks”. Raising children, we want them to be thankful! We tell them to say “please” and “thank you”. What I love about this book is that you see this little boy who is full of gratitude. He is thankful for big things in his life, as well as the small things. He is so grateful – and happy! It is a must for Ella’s bookshelf!

Snowmen At Night

Snomen

I love this book for so many reasons. Remember when you were a kid and you’d make your snowman? Then the next day you’d come out and he’d look a little different? It always made me wonder what he’s been up to! That’s exactly what this book is about. What do snowmen do at night?! This book is just so much fun to read and the illustrations are a hoot, too!

This book was a favorite of both my sons! Caralyn Buehner wrote a few sequels to this too (Snowmen At Christmas, Snowmen At Play, Snowmen At Work, Snowmen All Year)! My goal is to have all of these in Ella’s library.

Reading Dads Rock!

Reading is SO important! The great stories that are found in books will fuel a child’s imagination for years and years! A parent reading to their child is one of the greatest things in the world. It is quality time together. It is bonding time. It is something that I cannot wait to do with our daughter. Bring on the bedtime stories!!

44d34b9bd8186e90fe1b0b95b5aa20f6

“Let It Go!”

fce99d35f8494ee4bd1abe6b7e10aabd

With the upcoming birth of our daughter, my wife will often quiz me on Disney Princesses. This will be my first daughter and princesses are kind of a big deal! When Sam is getting ready for work she will often listen to her Disney Pandora channel. When a song comes on, she will ask, “What’s this one from?” Sometimes, I get it right, and sometimes I get it wrong. I have titled this blog “Let It Go” because it ties in with Disney Princesses and the apology I am about to make.

Remember Dana Carvey’s “Grumpy Old Man” character on SNL?

SNL_0636_06_Update_4_Grumpy_Old_Man

I’m not sure I have been quite as obnoxious as that character, but I know that I have gone against so many of the things I have posted in the past few months. I guess this proves three things (1) I am human (2) practicing what you preach can be difficult and (3) I need to always remind myself to “Let it go”.

I know for a fact that I have been in a “mood”, because I haven’t blogged as often as I have wanted to. My mind has been preoccupied with BS that I cannot control. I’ve never been able to really meditate or do “mindfulness” stuff, maybe because I can never seem to find a place and a time where there are no distractions. I wish I could, that might help.

So today’s blog is an apology, mainly to my wife, who knew things were bugging me and made me aware of it. It is an apology to my friends, who I have called and vented and ranted and raved to. It is an apology to you, because I am not a hypocrite, and need to practice what I preach. It is also an apology to myself, because I should never have let myself get to this place. I know better.

Time is precious, as I have stated in past blogs, so why spend so much time wasting it on worthless bullshit? I guess I have spent so much of my life doing it, that it is a hard habit to break. I have come a LONG way, but I was reminded this week that it doesn’t just go away, I still have to keep working on it. I’m an old dog, and this is a new trick. I must constantly be aware of the techniques I have learned to cope with certain situations and certain people. I must consistently practice them, not only for my own sense of well-being, but for those around me.

So I have gone back to my many notes and have compiled a mini-list of ways to “Let It Go”. They include:

Stop Talking About It

StopTalking1

Complaining is almost a natural response to being upset. Talking about it constantly isn’t going to help me (or anyone). Complaining basically stimulates my mind to keep thinking about it. Many times, as I have learned in hindsight, complaining can make a small issue, bigger than it is. Hey, sometimes you gotta vent and get things off your chest, but I guess the key to it is to vent and move on. Once it’s talked about, be done with it.

Put It In Perspective

01-01-Perspective-_-Boat-Land-Perspective-714026

“What’s the most likely thing that can happen?” When you ask yourself that, you can see possible outcomes and even realize that you can get through it. We tend to think of the “worst case scenarios” and go there without ever considering the other perspectives. It’s hard to remember that you often think about would “could” or “might” happen instead of what actually will happen. A great practice I was told to try was to ask, “How much is this going to matter tomorrow?” “How much will this matter in a year?”

Let Go of Control

Letting-go-of-control

The old saying holds true here: “God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, Courage to change the things I can, And wisdom to know the difference.” If life has taught us anything, it is that we cannot control the behaviors of others or the random events in life. What we CAN control is how we react or respond to those things! This is my biggest challenge. It is extremely difficult for me to use the “Gray Rock” method. I mean, I’m Italian, I talk with my hands! It goes against all that I have ever known, but I know that it’s the way to react to certain individuals.

Recognize the “Crazy”

mickey

How appropriate is Mickey Mouse here? Disney! It all ties in! LOL!

With some people, you simply have to remind yourself of WHO you are dealing with! I have to remind myself that they probably suffer from some sort of mental illness. Perhaps it’s Narcissistic Personality Disorder or Bi-Polar Disorder (the signs are there for both). This person is like an angry teen who needs control over everything. When they do not get their way, there is a meltdown. “You need to treat them like an immature child” I was told. So true.

Understand that these people need “you to be the enemy”. This only makes them look better to those who don’t know your side of the story. They will elaborate and create stories to make you look bad. It’s what they do. It’s part of the mental illness. You can’t control this, and I have already talked about the things you can’t control. If you can recognize the “crazy”, it will help you to deal with the craziness that comes with interactions with them.

I love Maya Angelou’s advice, “The first time someone shows you who they are, believe them.” Recognize who they are!

Set Boundaries and End the Drama

In some cases, communication has to happen with certain people. When vocal communication gets hostile, whether on the phone or in person, the conversation needs to end. If this happens regularly, then communications need to be done through text or e-mail. This will avoid (1) one person interrupting (2) yelling and raising voices and (3) the need to say sarcastic or under the breath comments or insults. This will (1) allow for a “paper trail” of the communication (2) no contact communication and (3) allows for short and concise communication.

Set the boundaries and stick with them. Don’t let others take advantage of you, use you, or guilt you into doing things or thinking things. Be the constant!

Closing thought

Someone sent me a Facebook message recently that said “you can’t let the behavior of others steal your joy. But if you do, it’s your choice. Focus on being the best and happiest that you can be – that’s where your energy should go. Set the best example you can and spend time and energy on people who lift you higher.” There is a lot of truth in that.

So in the words of Elsa, “Let it go!”

Positive-Life-Quotes-How-To-Learn-Let-It-Go-Surprise